THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2022 Page 17 Man Indicted in Connection with Targeting Seniors Today A Top Financial Scams Dear Savvy Senior, What are the most common scams today that target elderly seniors? My 75-year-old mother has been swindled several times over the past year, so I’m being extra cautious. Paranoid Patty Dear Patty, Great question! While many scams today are universal, there are certain types of fraud that specifi cally target older adults or affects them disproportionately. And unfortunately, these senior targeted scams are on the rise. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), in 2021 there were 92,371 older victims of fraud resulting in $1.7 billion in losses. This was a 74 percent increase in losses compared to 2020. Here are fi ve of the most common senior scams that were reported last year, that both you and your mom should be aware of. Government imposter scams: These are fraudulent telephone calls from people claiming to be from the Internal Revenue Service, Social Security Administration or Medicare. These scammers may falsely tell you that you have unpaid taxes and threaten arrest or deportation if you don’t pay up immediately. Or they may say your Social Security or Medicare benefi ts are in danger of being cut off if you don’t provide personal identifying information. They may even “spoof” your caller ID to make it look like the government is actually calling. Sweepstakes and lottery scams: These scams may contact you by phone, mail or email. They tell you that you’ve won or have the potential to win a jackpot. But you need to pay a fee, or cover taxes and processing fees to receive your prize, perhaps by prepaid debit card, wire transfer, money order or cash. Scammers may even impersonate well-known sweepstakes organizations, like Publishers Clearing House, to fool you. Robocalls and phone scam: Robocalls take advantage of sophisticated, automated phone technology to carry out a variety of scams on trusting older adults who answer the phone. Some robocalls may claim that a warranty is expiring on their car or electronic device, and payment is needed to renew it. These scammers may also “spoof” the number to make the call look authentic. One common robocall is the “Can you hear me?” call. When the older person says “yes,” the scammer records their voice and hangs up. The criminal then has a voice signature to authorize unwanted charges on items like stolen credit cards. Computer tech support scams: Theses scams prey on senior’s lack of knowledge about computers and cybersecurity. A pop-up message or blank screen usually appears on a computer or phone, telling you that your device is compromised and needs fi xing. When you call the support number for help, the scammer may either request remote access to your computer and/or that you pay a fee to have it repaired. Grandparent scam: The grandparent scam has been around for several years now. A scammer will call and say something along the lines of: “Hi Grandma, do you know who this is?” When the unsuspecting grandparent guesses the name of the grandchild the scammer most sounds like, the scammer has established a fake identity. The fake grandchild will then ask for money to solve some unexpected fi nancial problem (legal trouble, overdue rent, car repairs, etc.), to be paid via gift cards or money transfers, which don’t always require identification to collect. Other Scams Some other popular scams targeting older adults right now are romance scams through social media and online dating sites, COVID-19 scams, investment scams, Medicare and health insurance scams, and Internet and email fraud. For more information on the different types senior scams to watch out for, along with tips to help your mom protect herself, visit the National Council on Aging website at NCOA.org, and type in “the top 5 fi nancial scams targeting older adults” in the search bar. Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior. org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book. Attempted Kidnapping and Assault at Pelosi Residence federal grand jury returned an indictment on Thursday charging a California man with assault and attempted kidnapping in connection with the break in at the Pelosi residence on Oct. 28 in San Francisco. The indictment supersedes the federal criminal complaint fi led on Oct. 31. According to the indictment, David DePape, 42, of Richmond, was arrested on Oct. 28 inside the Pelosi residence by San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) police offi cers responding to a 911 call from Paul Pelosi, husband of U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Paul Pelosi later described to police that he had been asleep when DePape, whom he had never seen before, entered his bedroom looking for Nancy Pelosi. According to the indictment, minutes after the 911 call, two police offi cers responded to the Pelosi residence where they encountered Paul Pelosi and DePape struggling over a hammer. Offi cers told the men to drop the hammer, and DePape allegedly gained control of the hammer and swung it, striking Pelosi in the head. Offi cers immediately restrained DePape while Pelosi was injured on the ground. As set forth in the indictment, once DePape was restrained, offi cers secured a roll of tape, white rope, a second hammer, a pair of rubber and cloth gloves, and zip ties from the crime scene, where offi cers also observed a broken glass door to the back porch. DePape is charged with one count of assault upon an immediate family member of a U.S. ofINDICTED | SEE Page 19 Your local post office will be closed in recognition of Veterans Day P ost offi ces across the Commonwealth will be closed on Friday, November 11, in honor of Veterans Day. There will be no street delivery, except for guaranteed overnight parcels, and all retail operations will be closed for the day. Full retail and delivery operations will resume on Saturday, November 12. As one of the largest employers of U.S. veterans, nearly 10% of our workforce nationally, the NURSE | FROM Page 2 you’ve been a nurse in the Revere Public Schools for most of your career – how has COVID changed the perception of Public Health in Revere? How is this role diff erent? MAGUIRE: I think that our city fi nally actually saw what it was that public health does during the pandemic because we were the ones that were leaned on during the crisis. We were able to distinguish ourselves as the department you called for guidance, and I do think that will remain going forward. Working in the schools for so long, I see now how dramatically we have grown and started to cover issues that I never used to work on. INTERVIEWER: What made both of you get into this line of work? BUCK: I was a regular clinical nurse, working at a hospital and just always knew it wasn’t the right fi t for me. Most nurses get into their roles because they like helping people, but for some reason being in a hosUnited States Postal Service (USPS) is proud to honor the men and women who have selfl essly served our country in war and in peacetime and those who continue that tradition today. As the saying goes, “America is the land of the free because of the brave.” The USPS generally receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations. pital wasn’t the right fi t for me. I always thought – instead of helping one person with blood pressure issues, why not try to tackle the reason that an entire community has blood pressure issues? That’s what drew me into public health – trying to seek those answers and tackle larger community problems. MAGUIRE: I've only worked in pediatrics, and I was very comfortable working only in pediatrics for all of my nursing career. But working through Covid gave me a diff erent perspective of how you can help community. And so, when I left my school nurse job, I said that it was time for me to make an impact on not just the students that I worked with, but the community that I've lived in my life. That's how I came public health. Also, to work for somebody really who is as passionate about public health as Lauren is, and see a whole diff erent scope of public health, that’s exciting to me. She pushes me every day to learn new things and look at things from a diff erent perspective. Please Note: For USPS media resources, including broadcast-quality video and audio and photo stills, visit the USPS Newsroom. Follow USPS on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and LinkedIn. Subscribe to the USPS YouTube channel and like USPS on Facebook. For more information about the USPS, visit usps.com and facts.usps.com. More USPS holiday news can be found at usps.com/holidaynews. INTERVIEWER: If you had to give yourself piece of advice when COVID started, what would you say? BUCK: My first week of the pandemic, I wasn't working here. I was a nurse. And I mean, I just like would wish I would tell myself “Don’t panic!” Cause it was so scary. I struggled a lot with how scary it was this fi rst couple months and I just wish I could tell myself that you'll make it through. I would tell myself that in some situations, you're not going to make everyone happy and you have to be okay with that. I hate that as a piece of advice because obviously the goal is to try to meet people's needs, but you're not always going to be able to do that… and just learn to live with it a little bit better. MAGUIRE: I would tell myself not to be afraid to reach out. I think about at the beginning how we probably didn’t hit every neighborhood of Revere, or we weren’t translating enough information, but we learned pretty quickly how important that was and we will always continue to expand accessibility.
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